Politudes provides information capsules, summaries and commentary on national and international developments in social policy, research on social well-being, and the effectiveness of social programs and systems

Category: Tax policy

by Terrance Hunsley 5th in a series; Futures Entwined: The Nation State and the Welfare State … in the United States, for men born in 1930 those in the top 20 per cent of earners have a 5-year longer life expectancy than those in the bottom 50 per cent. For people born in 1960, the … More A Response to Poor Health and Low Income Among Older Workers

Fourth in a Series: Futures Entwined: The Nation State and the Welfare State by Terrance Hunsley Many people, especially social advocacy groups, feel that government commitments to the welfare state started a long period of retrenchment in the late seventies. The idea that a country can insulate its citizens from economic risk and … More Are Canada and OECD Countries Reducing Income Inequality?

by Terrance Hunsley The NAFTA negotiations are likely to be a tough uphill slog, given Mr Trump’s belligerent stance. It is hard to see how Canada will make much headway on subjects such as gender rights, indigenous rights and environmental regulations. But these issues are affected by international trade agreements, as is the whole range … More Protecting Human Rights in Trade Agreements

By Terrance Hunsley HUMA – the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development, and the Status of Persons with Disabilities, (the name rolls right off the tongue, doesn’t it.) has spent a year hearing from Canadian experts, social advocates, municipal and business leaders, about what the federal government can do to … More Parliamentary Committee Reports on National Strategy for Poverty Reduction

Editor’s note: The following submission, reprinted with permission of the Maytree Foundation, tackles a subject of growing importance and growing potential in the affirmation of social, economic and cultural rights, and the strengthening of democratic governance. Recommendations on strengthening the capacity of local governments to be effective in delivering on the obligations of the … More Strengthening Local Government Capacity in Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

by Robin Boadway We are posting this article with permission of the author and the Basic Income Guarantee Network, where it was originally published. It is a clear and simple explanation of a possible route to a guaranteed basic income, based on federal direct action. The pursuit of a basic income guarantee (BIG) is … More Refundable tax credits and the path to a basic income guarantee

The article below, which is reprinted with permission of the author, is a working paper currently being carried on the website (USBIG.net) of the US Basic Income Guarantee network. It is to be published in a new book being edited by Richard Pereira. Financing Basic Income in Switzerland – state of the debate before the … More Financing Basic Income in Switzerland

Politudes Commentary by Terrance Hunsley Since the election of the Trudeau government, there has been increased interest in the concept of basic income (also known as guaranteed income, and negative income tax). The confluence of liberal governments in Ottawa and seven provinces, as well as two NDP governments, suggests that a political consensus may be … More Basic Income: Lets Not do a Pilot Project

For those who are concerned to hear stories in the press about tax havens, global corporations avoiding the payment of taxes in countries where they do huge business, global banks colluding with clients to hide income and assist money laundering, there may be some hope. Out of widespread concern about this situation has emerged a … More Challenging Fiscal Havens and Tax Avoidance by Global Corporations